Joss Whedon's Dollhouse

[neoolong]

Originally Posted by bendrix

What enjoyment, if any, do you derive from the show? Why do you watch it?

Again, not calling you out--honestly curious.

It's moderately entertaining on a per episode basis, but I'm not connecting to the "slow burn." I usually multi-task when I'm watching it, so it's not like appointment television for me.

I just can't find myself caring about her journey, wherever it is supposed to end up, so I find myself wanting it to just get there. I find other characters to be much more interesting. Maybe I am impatient, but at least for Lost, I found it was better and so was willing to put up with the length of time it took to get answers.

[DaveB]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

Jesus you have bad taste in shows.

And neoolong, it's a slow burn as it should be. I like the idea that they were planting in stuff from the very first episode that will only start paying off by the end of the season. Don't forget that this is probably the crux of the entire show (assuming it lasts many seasons, which it probably won't) - I mean, how long didn't it take the guys in LOST just to find a fucking hatch?

One of the problems with shows that are devised around a central mystery or group of mysteries is that audiences need to regularly adjust their expectations as it becomes clear what will and won't be solved in the short-term. For instance, Buffy and Angel had series-long themes, but it was expected that most major plot points would be somewhat resolved in the course of a single season arc. We learned this as we went.

Dollhouse is in a tough spot, because Whedon clearly had the big picture of an ongoing series in mind (there are some big-time philosophical questions that would require time), but knew that he'd have to tie things up to some degree in the first season, as well. This probably became even clearer as he started reviewing the first batch of episodes, realized that they were sort of weak and that a second season might not happen due to that bad start. Still, in the odd chance it does get renewed, I'd prefer he took his time resolving the mysteries and tackling the philosophical issues instead of answering to impatient fans' concerns.

I've been rewatching Twin Peaks, and the worst thing that ever happened on that show is that they solved the mystery at the heart of the show just because Mark Frost thought the viewers couldn't take the suspense any more. Maybe continuing the mystery would have been frustrating to some viewers, but it might have made for a better series for the patient ones.

[bendrix]

Originally Posted by neoolong

It's moderately entertaining on a per episode basis, but I'm not connecting to the "slow burn." I usually multi-task when I'm watching it, so it's not like appointment television for me.

I just can't find myself caring about her journey, wherever it is supposed to end up, so I find myself wanting it to just get there. I find other characters to be much more interesting. Maybe I am impatient, but at least for Lost, I found it was better and so was willing to put up with the length of time it took to get answers.

Okay. I was wondering only because when I have as many issues with a show as you do with this one, I generally stop watching it. Or at the very least, temper my expectations.

[Jesse Custer]

Originally Posted by bendrix

Okay. I was wondering only because when I have as many issues with a show as you do with this one, I generally stop watching it. Or at the very least, temper my expectations.

I'm going to assume that your ability to do this is a result of Not Being Gary Busey.

Originally Posted by DaveB

I've been rewatching Twin Peaks, and the worst thing that ever happened on that show is that they solved the mystery at the heart of the show just because Mark Frost thought the viewers couldn't take the suspense any more.

Not to derail, but I was very much under the impression that the decision to lower the boom on that mystery was a decision that the network made, not Frost or Lynch. Had you heard otherwise?

[Farsight]

I know I'm still watching Dollhouse for 2 reasons:

1) It's nearly over. There's not much risk of wasting a lot of time now, so I may as well see how it ends.

2) I have a hard time giving up on any genre show that shows promise. I watched 2 seasons of Heroes and every one of Smallville! (It hurt to write that)

Heroes is actually a good comparison. Both shows had some good episodes and some real stinkers. Both showed evidence of improvement. Both spent way too much time on a bad actress playing a boring character (Echo, meet Stripper-Hulk). Both were pretty dependant on their finale to make or break their season (for Heroes, it broke it).

The main difference is that Heroes had a simple premise and a pilot that got people's attention, while Dollhouse had a byzantine mess of a premise and a pilot that scared away anyone who wasn't already a Whedon fan.

[DaveB]

Originally Posted by Jesse Custer

Not to derail, but I was very much under the impression that the decision to lower the boom on that mystery was a decision that the network made, not Frost or Lynch. Had you heard otherwise?

Wikipedia says Frost and Lynch butted heads on this; I haven't watched any of the extras on the DVD set yet or read any interviews on the topic (lately), so I can't confirm whether that's correct.

[Girma]

Originally Posted by neoolong

It's moderately entertaining on a per episode basis, but I'm not connecting to the "slow burn." I usually multi-task when I'm watching it, so it's not like appointment television for me.

I just can't find myself caring about her journey, wherever it is supposed to end up, so I find myself wanting it to just get there. I find other characters to be much more interesting. Maybe I am impatient, but at least for Lost, I found it was better and so was willing to put up with the length of time it took to get answers.

That’s just it, though, Dollhouse, for surprisingly long stretches, just wasn’t engaging television, precisely due to things like casting. So sure, you don’t care about Echo’s journey, but, perhaps that has more to due with Eliza Dushku than the pace of its plot.

Moreover, am I the only one that’s never thought much of the actor playing Boyd? I sort of hope he’s a doll at this point, because he’s currently about as interesting as a splint of balsa wood.

[neoolong]

Yup. I'd have to agree with you there.

[Hammerhead]

He's the closest thing to an emotional center the show has. I like him.

And that was one hell of a fight with Ballard.

[Matt M]

Originally Posted by Greg David

Probably not as bad as Golf, though.

I read an interview with Whedon (hell, Woodward's probably posted it here already) where he noted that he had a story in mind for Golf.

Originally Posted by Jesse Custer

Victor's one hell of an actor. We've seen him convincingly ape Russian mobsters, Italian playboys, country horse-experts, and now Dominic. Color me impressed.

Victor also sells the Doll state better than any of the others.

Originally Posted by Hammerhead

He's the closest thing to an emotional center the show has. I like him.

And that was one hell of a fight with Ballard.

I honestly didn't know who I wanted to win that fight. Which I see as the knotty morality of the show paying off nicely.

[Girma]

Originally Posted by Hammerhead

He's the closest thing to an emotional center the show has. I like him.

And that was one hell of a fight with Ballard.

It was an engaging fight, no question about it, but the emotional center? You actually find yourself empathizing with Boyd? Hell, I’d give that to a completely fabricated personality like Mellie before I’d give it to the guy that spends half his time looking constipated.

Sure, Boyd’s supposed to (or at least was supposed to) be our surrogate, but man, he plays so detached from what’s actually going on I find it hard to identify with him at all.

[Hammerhead]

What's great about the fight is that they both want to rescue Echo from the Dollhouse. Only Boyd knows that the brute-force approach won't work in the long term. Where Ballard seems all too willing to kill, Boyd is trying to minimize the conflict. When he gets the upper hand, he knows he can't just let Ballard go-- there'd be too many questions-- but even in the office he's doing what he can to save Ballard. I love that he argues that a wipe shouldn't be performed without consent-- it's such a gray moral point.

[Girma]

Ah, I get it now, I’m referring to Harry J. Lennix, not the character he plays. Anything I’ve seen him in suffers for it, be it as Chief of Staff on the god-awful Commander in Chief (yes, I’m arguing that his presence made that pile of dreck worse), a terrible cameo on House as a trumpeter, or his portrayal of Boyd in Dollhouse.

Lennix couldn’t muster an ounce of charisma if his life depended on it.

[Jesse Custer]

Originally Posted by MoNkaholic

Ah, I get it now, I’m referring to Harry J. Lennix, not the character he plays. Anything I’ve seen him in suffers for it, be it as Chief of Staff on the god-awful Commander in Chief (yes, I’m arguing that his presence made that pile of dreck worse), a terrible cameo on House as a trumpeter, or his portrayal of Boyd in Dollhouse.

Lennix couldn’t muster an ounce of charisma if his life depended on it.

See, after his role in the Matrix (the first thing I'd seen him in and where he is, without a doubt, tied for 'worst performance in the film' with Jolly-Old-Man-That-Looks-Like-Mrs. Hawking at the least) I'd have agreed with you unconditionally.

But I actually really enjoy his work on this show. Different Strokes and all, but I think Boyd is one of the most interesting characters, and that's due as much to Lennix's performance as it is to the writing.

ETA: It's interesting to see how much the Matrix has influenced Whedon and his worlds. From casting to camera-work to story beats, it's really evident that the films had a profound effect on him. You can argue that this is a bad or good thing and you'd be partially right either way.

[Hammerhead]

On the Buffy Season 4 finale commentary, Whedon directly acknowledges this. As a not-much-of-a-Matrix fan, I find that kind of shocking.

And if there's any case on Dollhouse where I can't get past the actor it's Peniket, though I think he's also got the most unworkable character.

[Farsight]

Originally Posted by Hammerhead

And if there's any case on Dollhouse where I can't get past the actor it's Peniket, though I think he's also got the most unworkable character.

That's a stiff competition though. The strangest thing about this show is how flat nearly all of Whedon's characters are. Characters are his specialty, but these are almost uniformly so awful that the actors are really stranded.

To compare to Alias, Eliza Dushku isn't Jennifer Garner, but Echo REALLY isn't Sydney. Whedon may call Dushku his muse, but either she's a poor muse, or he really failed her, or both.

[Jesse Custer]

Originally Posted by Hammerhead

On the Buffy Season 4 finale commentary, Whedon directly acknowledges this. As a not-much-of-a-Matrix fan, I find that kind of shocking.

He does? Time to drag out the Buffy dvds...Thanks for the heads-up, Hammerhead.

Originally Posted by Hammerhead

And if there's any case on Dollhouse where I can't get past the actor it's Peniket, though I think he's also got the most unworkable character.

I think he's been destined to basically become Boyd since the beginning of the season. If a season 2 is picked up, I'm of the opinion that Peniket will become a handler.

[DaveB]

Originally Posted by Farsight

That's a stiff competition though. The strangest thing about this show is how flat nearly all of Whedon's characters are. Characters are his specialty, but these are almost uniformly so awful that the actors are really stranded.

To compare to Alias, Eliza Dushku isn't Jennifer Garner, but Echo REALLY isn't Sydney. Whedon may call Dushku his muse, but either she's a poor muse, or he really failed her, or both.

This show isn't supposed to be Alias, though. That was a show built around a character. This is a show built around a concept, but it just happens to use a hook given form by a single actress.

Echo is practically a Macguffin. Ostensibly, the character was designed as an opportunity for Dushku to flex her acting chops (such as they are) from week to week, but Echo was clearly not supposed to function as a fleshed-out character with an arc, at least not in the first season. She's no more the main character than Laura Palmer is the main character in Twin Peaks.

[Hammerhead]

We knew more about Laura Palmer in the TP pilot than we've yet learned about Echo.

[DaveB]

Originally Posted by Hammerhead

We knew more about Laura Palmer in the TP pilot than we've yet learned about Echo.

Irrelevant. Neither is the point of the show - they're just convenient images on which to hang the other stuff. In fact, it hurt Dollhouse that the first episodes seemed designed with the intent of highlighting Dushku's versatility from week-to-week. The focus on Dushku and the overarching narrative are working at cross-purposes, IMO.

[Jesse Custer]

Originally Posted by DaveB

Irrelevant. Neither is the point of the show - they're just convenient images on which to hang the other stuff. In fact, it hurt Dollhouse that the first episodes seemed designed with the intent of highlighting Dushku's versatility from week-to-week. The focus on Dushku and the overarching narrative are working at cross-purposes, IMO.

One of the bigger problems with Dollhouse for me this season has been that the show essentially never takes a break from itself. We're always watching the lab, an engagement, or Ballard's lousy home life. We have never seen Boyd deal with an ex-colleague, or have a drink after a hard day. We've never seen what Topher's life is like when he's not in the Topher-room.

As the season has gone on, we've started to catch glimpses of the emotional life of some of these people (Adele's Lonelyhearts engagement was, I thought, really well done and gave a lot of insight into her), and the writers have started using the basic set-up of the show to provide some slick emotional hooks and payoffs (that scene last week between Ballard and Mellie was wrenchingly effective for me).

Given that a big part of the show appears to be the notion that anyone can be a Doll (and given the Matrix influences, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that everyone's a Doll to one extent or another, and that the technology Dominic's so worried about letting out of the box has already been set loose in a massive 'you are in the Matrix' fashion), and given how divisive Dushku's performance has been, Whedon could handily retool the show for next season by giving Dushku a more defined and singular character (letting her be the 'Ballard' of next season for instance, having escaped the House) and letting a cast of multiple Dolls do the heavy lifting in terms of acting. Hell, just make Victor the focus next season. Guy's got chops.

[Cleo]

I know there is practically no chance of this happening now, but I would love to see where a second season of this show would go. The last few episodes have been a massive step up on how it originally started out. I did try really hard to be positive but the first few episodes were pretty dull. I think the first really interesting episode was probably Needs, and it's just got better and better since then.

[Girma]

Originally Posted by Jesse Custer

See, after his role in the Matrix (the first thing I'd seen him in and where he is, without a doubt, tied for 'worst performance in the film' with Jolly-Old-Man-That-Looks-Like-Mrs. Hawking at the least) I'd have agreed with you unconditionally.

Wow, I completely forgot about that, or at least, tried to...

[ElCapitanAmerica]

So that was a lot more fun that 3/4 of this season, nice finale.

However, I think they screwed up on the ending somewhat. It doesn't really make much sense for Ballard to not care about Caroline's fate and end up working for the Dollhouse. Why didn't he work on an agreement that would free her and his "girlfriend"?

They should have come up with a better reason for Echo to stay in the Dollhouse, like let Alpha destroy Caroline's personality (their backup strategy is ridiculous btw) which means she would have nowhere else to go but the Dollhouse. Then end it like they did here with her saying her name, to me that would have made much more sense.

But enjoyed the episode and I'm looking forward to the next season!

[Kim. Criminal]

I thought it was a nice finish to the season after the crappiest start ever.

Echo: I have 38 brains and not one of them thinks you can sign a contract to be a slave. Especially now that we have a black President.

Caroline: We have a black president? Wow, I am missing everything.

[Matt Goldberg]

I will say that this show turned around in its second half and I wouldn't be opposed to a second season. I don't think it's going to get that second season, but I never got to the point where I liked it so much that I'd be sad to see it go.

I do have two questions:

1) Why did Ballard choose to free Madeline instead of Caroline?

2) Did we ever find out who was using dolls to direct Ballard to the Dollhouse? Was it Dominic?

[ElCapitanAmerica]

2) Not really answered, but I thought maybe that was Alpha?

1) Guilt?

[DarthLowbudget@]

That was a hell of a finale, but if it doesn't get another season it's going to leave me frustrated. I mean, with the ratings the show has been getting they were pretty ballsy to open up as many new plot threads as they did.

Also, for all the armchair philosopher's in the house, I think the show came down pretty evenly on the idea that (in Freudian terms) the imprints really comprise an Ego and Superego to be laid over an Id that remains in the active to some extant, even when they are in the doll state (and perhaps Topher et al really don't fully understand the tech they're using?).

I think the idea may really be that there is some degree of "primal us" at the brain's structural level, and everything else is determined by past experience, memory etc. Kind of a split down the middle between the nature/nurture argument.

[Matt Goldberg]

Originally Posted by ElCapitanAmerica

2) Not really answered, but I thought maybe that was Alpha?

1) Guilt?

I guess it could be Alpha. Did they establish that dolls could be controlled remotely?

[DarthLowbudget@]

Yes, Alpha remotely wiped Echo during the art heist episode.

[Ratty]

Goddamnit, we finally get Amy Acker into some slutty outfits and now it's probably over!

Did anyone get the impression that Topher and "Whiskey" knew each other before she became a Doll? Why else program her to hate him other than some twisted form of guilt on Topher's part?

Decent finale. I'd be on board for a mythical second season.

[Matt Goldberg]

Well a remote wipe is one thing. But he was able to program them with instructions and use them as a microphone? And was it really necessary to be so cryptic and force Ballard to hunt down the dollhouse? Was it because Ballard wouldn't believe it if the mystery was too easy to solve? Was it because Alpha just enjoyed toying with Ballard?

I don't know, it seems like if he could control dolls remotely, this was an incredibly roundabout way to bust out Echo and her wedges.

[Barry Woodward]

Apparently a version of "Omega" sent to some reviewers had scenes that were cut from the broadcast version. One of them involved Boyd, November and Sierra pursuing Alpha.

[Ratty]

Originally Posted by Barry Woodward

Apparently the version of "Omega" sent to reviewers had scenes that were cut from the broadcast version. One of them involved Alpha being pursued by Boyd, November and Sierra and his escape.

Spinoff!

[Girma]

Originally Posted by Matt Goldberg

I will say that this show turned around in its second half and I wouldn't be opposed to a second season. I don't think it's going to get that second season, but I never got to the point where I liked it so much that I'd be sad to see it go.

Which is pretty much where I’ve been at for the entire second half. Occasionally hit by unexpected quality, only to follow that up with things like completely demystifying Alpha, to the point that anything special or important about him is reduced to the ravings of a functional schizophrenic.

And I still have no idea why Echo willfully turned herself back in to the Dollhouse, perhaps if they actually played the “composite event” as in anyway debilitating I’d see it.

[bendrix]

Originally Posted by Ratty

Why else program her to hate him other than some twisted form of guilt on Topher's part?

That's exactly the reason. He feels guilty for stealing her life from her, since her scars pretty much negate the contract and there's no way she's leaving the Dollhouse.

[Matt Goldberg]

Originally Posted by bendrix

That's exactly the reason. He feels guilty for stealing her life from her, since her scars pretty much negate the contract and there's no way she's leaving the Dollhouse.

Yeah, because having facial scars (and not even horrific scars; to say she's "disfigured" is a bit of a stretch because most guys would still, to use the parlance of our times, "tap that") means you can't live in the outside world any more.

No, she was right: they basically just made a financial decision. What's confusing is whether or not her contract is up. If it's over, then she's being kept there against her will/keeping herself a psychological prisoner and refusing to face the world and her employers have no problem with that.

The scars, while not pretty, doesn't even negate them from being actives. They just can't go on sex missions anymore. The show has gone out of its way to show that's not all the actives do.

[Jack Dnim]

Yeah, I don't see how she can't still go on sex missions. Probably not the go to girl for every mission, but a fair amount wouldn't care, and there would probably be an entire niche market based on the scars.

If we want to get into the legalities I'm sure there's something in the contract that's a 'shit happens' clause. Seems like they just needed a doctor more than another active. Topher probably knew her, and she probably still has time on her contract, but really what does this contract stuff mean anyway, they could keep someone forever.

I kind of feel like they should relegate this series to thriteen episode seasons, that is, if they wanted to renew it. Keep the storytelling tight, and dump the extraneous one offs.

It was pretty creepy how everyone was beaming with pride that Whiskey was selling so well.

[Hammerhead]

Originally Posted by Barry Woodward

Apparently a version of "Omega" sent to some reviewers had scenes that were cut from the broadcast version. One of them involved Boyd, November and Sierra pursuing Alpha.

Also, this week's 'previously' contained some footage of Tudyk I don't recall seeing last week.

[DaveB]

Originally Posted by Matt Goldberg

What's confusing is whether or not her contract is up. If it's over, then she's being kept there against her will/keeping herself a psychological prisoner and refusing to face the world and her employers have no problem with that.

Her contract is definitely up. The show made a point of noting that the first flashback with Alpha and Whiskey was five years ago.

Perhaps Alpha destroyed the original and backup wedges with her personality on it while looking for his own? Can't remember if something like that was mentioned. Maybe another deleted scene would have cleared this up (along with Echo's decision to honor her contract).

If this were the case, it's hard to say what the honorable thing to do would be. You could release her from her contract, I suppose, but you'd have to send her out into the world with a manufactured personality, which isn't true to the intent of the contract, either.

As the show went on, I thought we'd end up with composite-Echo as the new default mode. I even wondered if they were essentially going to kill off Caroline and leave us with this new version of Echo trying to reinvent Caroline from the bottom (or id, as darthlowbudget said) up. It may have been the most appealing Dushku's been all season, which is no surprise, since she tends to do "tough" pretty well.

[Dr. Murder]

Maybe I'm missing something, but what makes you think Echo went back of her own accord? Surely all it'd take was Boyd offering her a treatment and the doll training would kick back in.

[DaveB]

Originally Posted by Dr. Murder

Maybe I'm missing something, but what makes you think Echo went back of her own accord? Surely all it'd take was Boyd offering her a treatment and the doll training would kick back in.

That's unclear. If that were the case, it would have been significantly easier to deal with Alpha. For all we know, that command is built into each imprint at the point that it's loaded into an active.

But it did seem like uber-Echo was doing right by Caroline, so she might have just gone along voluntarily.

[ElCapitanAmerica]

Originally Posted by DaveB

As the show went on, I thought we'd end up with composite-Echo as the new default mode. I even wondered if they were essentially going to kill off Caroline and leave us with this new version of Echo trying to reinvent Caroline from the bottom (or id, as darthlowbudget said) up. It may have been the most appealing Dushku's been all season, which is no surprise, since she tends to do "tough" pretty well.

This would have been a much better ending.

[Felt Pelt]

BSG ("Gods"), Frankenstein, Blue Velvet and Eternal Sunshine nods. I enjoyed it. I really wish it would get a second season. DaveB's idea would have been great, the random gunshots at the electrical station was such a weightless ending.

I'd like to see Alpha and Omega as super-nemeses and Acker discovering her inner 60 year-old male. The spoilers about the unaired episode make it sound like a definite coda to everything, but I'm not sure I'm curious enough to spend money to see it.

[Yaz]

Originally Posted by DaveB

Her contract is definitely up. The show made a point of noting that the first flashback with Alpha and Whiskey was five years ago.

It was "A Few Years Ago" which specifically leaves it ambiguous. I guess we'll never know.

[bendrix]

Originally Posted by Matt Goldberg

Yeah, because having facial scars (and not even horrific scars; to say she's "disfigured" is a bit of a stretch because most guys would still, to use the parlance of our times, "tap that") means you can't live in the outside world any more.

No, she was right: they basically just made a financial decision. What's confusing is whether or not her contract is up. If it's over, then she's being kept there against her will/keeping herself a psychological prisoner and refusing to face the world and her employers have no problem with that.

The scars, while not pretty, doesn't even negate them from being actives. They just can't go on sex missions anymore. The show has gone out of its way to show that's not all the actives do.

I was unclear. I meant that she couldn't leave the dollhouse as the person who originally signed the contract. It's not that her original persona wouldn't want to leave the dollhouse; it's that Topher and company made the decision for her after the Alpha incident, exactly for the reasons you mention (not to mention her original personality might have a few issues with her face being slashed up).

I took Whiskey/Topher's final exchange to mean, "You feel guilty for basically killing my original personality for financial reasons/damage control, and your guilt and self-loathing led you to program me to hate you." That's the only point I was making.

As to whether or not she could still be an attractive active for sex-related missions, I wasn't speculating on that.


ETA: Interesting theory on Dushku's dubious acting job on the Salon forums:

Of course Echo is always the same personality

"Whether she's the hostage negotiator or the dream girl or the youth outreach volunteer, Dushku walks, talks and acts exactly the same."

Is Joss too subtle for you? Not only are Echo's imprints all basically like each other -- they are all basically like Caroline. We've seen in earlier episodes how Echo's various personalities intermix in ways the Dollhouse doesn't think is possible. In the season finale, Joss made it pretty explicit: with 38 personalities, she wasn't schizo like Alpha -- she still saw the world the way Caroline did, except more clearly and maturely. Perhaps what Caroline could grow into, like the child counselor?

Most dolls aren't like that, as we see explicitly in their wild changes with different imprints (though Sierra does tend to usually be smart, talkative investigatory personalities). The other place we see this (though less clearly) is in Alpha. His original personality (nascent serial killer) also influenced his imprints, though not as strongly as Echo's.

So what is the true basis of personality? Is it really independent of the physical body? And was anyone listening when Echo told the little girl that when you can't rescue yourself, you can create an alternate personality to do it for you? What does that say about Caroline? I hope we get a second season to explore this further (and have fun watching it happen), but well, it's Fox.

I want to believe, but that kind of sophistry almost deserves a no-prize. If you want an actress to indicate that's she's less altered by imprints than the others, you get an actress who can actually portray the different personalities with the nuances indicative of the same core persona (rather than have the sole variation be a Southern accent or glasses).

If Victor isn't gonna get to be a different personality every episode in the theoretical second season, I'll be pretty disappointed.

[Matt M]

Tudyk delivering the line "Let Echo be number one" before going apeshit on Whiskey was definitely one of my favorite moments of the season.

And I don't see how Victor's not largely off the table next year (if there is a next year), at least for the kind of engagements we saw this year.

[Girma]

Originally Posted by Yaz

It was "A Few Years Ago" which specifically leaves it ambiguous. I guess we'll never know.

I was about to say, it definitely says “A Few Years” and not five. All this talk of Whiskey’s contract already being up is coming from out of left field. The show explicitly states that it was the scars that led Whiskey to play doctor, and, while I’m sure we can find holes in this reasoning, the incident coupled with Echo’s arrival leads rather neatly to Whiskey replacing Dr. Saunders, with Echo becoming the #1 active.

Nothing from the episode justifies another interpretation.

[Yaz]

Originally Posted by MoNkaholic

I was about to say, it definitely says “A Few Years” and not five. All this talk of Whiskey’s contract already being up is coming from out of left field. The show explicitly states that it was the scars that led Whiskey to play doctor, and, while I’m sure we can find holes in this reasoning, the incident coupled with Echo’s arrival leads rather neatly to Whiskey replacing Dr. Saunders, with Echo becoming the #1 active.

Nothing from the episode justifies another interpretation.

Well they don't really give any info either way. Her contract might be up, it might not, we don't really know. They might have put her real personality back in and she may have been so horrified that they took it out again.

The real question in my mind was why did they leave a persona that's so ... damaged? Why make her think that she had her face sliced up by a psychopath when "you fell on your face while rock climbing" would work just as well?

[Overlord]

Really enjoyed the last half of the season, particularly the last three or four episodes.

Dushku is the worst actress/actor on the show by a wide margin.